Browse News

Arni Isaksson And Gael Grimaud To Battle For The CWFC Welterweight Title at ‘Fight Night’ 2

The inaugural CWFC Fight Night event saw a wealth of international talent travel to the Kingdom of Jordan to do battle in front of a live sell out crowd at the luxurious five star Le Royal Hotel. This event earned rave reviews from fans and pundits alike and was beamed around the world live on Television and via the internet.

Now Cage Warriors return to Amman on September 8th with an even bigger event at the New Boxing Arena in King Hussein Youth City which will see the newly vacated Cage Warriors Welterweight Title on the line. As the dangerous Icelandic striker Arni “The Ice Viking” Isaksson (11-3-0) will do battle with the French grappler Gael Grimaud (13-5-0) over the Championship distance of 5 x 5 minute rounds in the main event of the evening.

Known for its rich lineage the Cage Warriors Welterweight Title has been previously been held by the UFC veterans Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy, Forrest Petz and Pascal “Panzer” Krauss. Over the years the CWFC Welterweight Title has been contested in several memorable encounters which has seen the charismatic British star Dan Hardy capture the belt in a five round thriller against Matt “12 Gauge” Thorpe in November 2005.

Then in 2008, Hardy won the Title for the second time when he overpowered the former UFC veteran Chad Reiner with strikes in third round of a tense tactical affair. Whilst in 2010 the German standout Pascal Krauss defeated the then unbeaten Scotsman John Quinn in the main event of CWFC 37 by submission in a dominant performance which saw him called-up to the UFC just weeks later.

Since then the Title has remained in Krauss’ hands as the Cage Warriors hierarchy waited for an appropriate stage to host another Title fight and with “Fight Night 2” just a week away, the CWFC team have acted and will place the Title on the line at this prestigious event. Due to the German’s UFC commitments Krauss has gracefully vacated the Title which allows both Isaksson and Grimaud the chance to shine in front of an expected crowd of around 2500 people. With both combatants having fought internationally during their careers, winning both Titles and tournaments, this bout promises to be a memorable affair.

Known as “The Ice Viking” the 27 year old native of Iceland is no stranger to Cage Warriors having fought on three separate CWFC events. However he is best known for his debut Cage Warriors appearance when he overcome a stacked field to win a one night, eight man, number 1 contender tournament in March 2006. Despite only being 3-1 as a professional at as the time, Isaksson finished all three opponents inside the distance defeating the future UFC veterans Jeff Cox (by KO) and Dennis Siver (via Armbar) in the process.

However Isaksson never received his CWFC Title shot due to injuries and other issues and dropped a decision to the talented Swedish grappler Diego Gonzalez later that year before suffering a knee injury which sidelined him until late 2009. Further inactively prevented the Icelandic fighter from gaining momentum but his career received a boost when he captured the Pro FC Welterweight Title in October 2010, when he defeated the then unbeaten 11-0 Russian Magomed Saadulaev by Arm Triangle Choke in the Ukraine.

Isaksson has since picked-up wins against Ronan McKay in Ireland by submission and last time out he defeated against the tough Welshman Kevin Reed at Cage Warriors 40 back in February. However Isaksson has continued to face frustration due to injuries and a lack of available opposition due to his reputation as one of Europe’s toughest unsigned Welterweights.

Nevertheless the Nordic warrior has continued to spend time honing his skills under the tutelage of the BJJ Black Belt John Kavanagh at SBG Ireland in Dublin and at the Combat Gym in his native Iceland and will be ready for his opportunity to claim the one Title he has eluded him for over five years.

Standing between Isaksson and the coveted CWFC Welterweight Title is another experienced European fighter in the form of the well travelled Frenchman Gael Grimaud (13-5-0). Grimaud makes his CWFC debut on September 8th and will pose a formidable threat to the Icelandic star having won 6 of his last 7 bouts. Based in Toulouse and representing Team Haute Tension, the 31 year old has fought the majority of his bouts on the French circuit which has seen him use his submission skills to great effect.

His impressive displays at home saw him earn a call-up to the 2009 French M-1 Challenge squad, which allowed him to make his mark overseas with appearances in Japan, the USA and Holland. These bouts were televised around the world and saw the Frenchman earn an impressive Triangle choke win in Kansas City, USA against the Englishman Simon Phillips.

Whilst so far in 2011, Grimaud has kept busy with four straight victories which have seen him walk away victorious from a one night, four man tournament at 100% Fight in Paris back in January. As he defeated his fellow Frenchmen Gary Kono (9-6) by submission and the dangerous Seydina Seck (13-5) by unanimous decision to claim his first tournament win.

Grimund was next in action at the M-1 Selection 2011 event in Russia on April 1st, as he defeated Ramazan Abdulzhalilov by Guillotine Choke in round 2 of their bout. Whilst the following month he continued his impressive win streak by submitting Atal Kakar inside a minute at the Run Fight Trophy event in France.

Although the Frenchman may go into the fight as a slight underdog he will have far more momentum behind him and with 9 career submission victories he will no doubt vigorously test the ground game of the powerful Icelandic striker when they meet on September 8th, in what should be a tantalising end to a phenomenal show in Amman, Jordan.

You can catch this exciting main event as part of a stacked six bout televised fightcard on Thursday 8th September LIVE online and via our broadcast TV partners around the world from 9pm Amman time, 7pm UK time, 2pm Eastern US time. See below for more details.

To watch Cage Warriors Fight Night 2 LIVE online go to www.cagewarriors.com and follow the instructions on the day